


Five Ways People Didn't Find Out About Booster And Ted

by DoctorV



Series: Archive: Doc's Old-Ass Comics Fic (DC, JLU, etc.) [55]
Category: Blue Beetle (Comics), Booster Gold (Comics), DCU, DCU - Comicverse, Justice League, Justice League International (Comic)
Genre: Blood and Injury, Closet Sex, Drunken Confessions, Duet, F/M, Fight Sex, Karaoke, Love Confessions, M/M, Paparazzi, Public Display of Affection, Rough Kissing, Rough Sex, Secret Marriage, Secret Relationship, Voyeurism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-11
Updated: 2018-06-03
Packaged: 2019-05-17 18:03:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 1,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14836532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoctorV/pseuds/DoctorV
Summary: It could have happened any of these ways, but instead we got none. So much wasted opportunity.





	1. In The Act

**Author's Note:**

> Archiving some old old OLD fanfic of mine. This was originally posted to LiveJournal 09/30/2006, with the author's note:  
> "Hmph, well I meant for this to be comment-fic, but it turned out to be too long. Oh well. Am I hearing any complaints? ^_^  
> First of my responses to my ["Five Things" fic requests post](https://doctorv.livejournal.com/83524.html). This one goes out to kirke_novak, who requested exactly what the title says.  
> (I'll post a link on boostle when I wake up. Sleepy time now.)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They eventually work out joint custody of the closet.

Silence hung thick in the air as horrified gaze met horrified gaze, frozen by uncertainty and shock.

 

"Um..." Booster mumbled.

 

"It's not what it looks like!" Beetle wheezed.

 

Ralph and Sue glanced at each other, then reluctantly looked back at the pair.

 

"Let me guess," Sue said slowly, pointing at them. "Ted had a heart attack scare and Booster, you were...performing a life-saving preventative treatment."

 

"Exactly!" Booster agreed, nodding rapidly. Beetle nodded along with him, grateful and desperate.

 

"By sticking your hand down his tights," Sue continued flatly.

 

They were silent for a moment, before Beetle smiled sheepishly. "It's...a radical new experimental technique?"

 

"I don't think you were doing it right," Ralph chimed in thoughtfully. "You were moaning pretty loudly."

 

Beetle's head fell back against the wall with a quiet thump and Booster buried his face in the man's neck.

 

"I think we're really missing the  _ point _ here, though," Sue said firmly. "Which is that this is  _ our _ closet, you need to find your own."

 

That had Booster and Beetle abruptly lifting their heads to stare at the married couple in surprise. Ralph just smiled smugly and wrapped his arms around his wife's waist.


	2. In The Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The only one that isn't overtly SuperBuddies. ...But could still easily be SuperBuddies.

The battle was hard-won and long. Every hero in the area, and those who could get there quickly, had been called in, and most had heeded that call.

 

When it was all over but for the clean-up, a breathless and panicked Booster Gold scrambled over to where he had seen Blue Beetle go down after a stray laser blast. From the looks of things, Beetle had taken the laser-armed robot down with him.

 

With a grunt, Booster shoved the robot off of the top of his friend and dropped to his knees beside Beetle.

 

"Ted? Buddy?" Booster whispered worriedly, poking and prodding the man in search of damage.

 

Beetle grimaced and weakly protested, then found himself swept up in a relieved hug. "...hn?"

 

Letting go enough so that he could look Beetle in the face, Booster grinned. "You okay, pal?"

 

Laying over Booster's lap, one goggle lens cracked, with a thin trickle of blood congealing on his cheek, Beetle's mouth crookedly tilted up at the corner. "Bwa-ha-ha," he muttered hoarsely, reaching up to touch Booster's cheek with one hand.

 

Naturally, the reporters got on the scene just in time to capture their kiss with film and photo.


	3. In Holy Matrimony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quick history lesson so this makes more sense:  
> 2003 - _Formerly Known as the Justice League_ (first appearance of the Super Buddies) published.  
>  2005 - Same-sex marriage legalized in all parts of Canada. _I Can't Believe It's Not the Justice League_ (second appearance of the Super Buddies) published.  
>  2006 - Doc writes this fic.  
> 2015 - Same-sex marriage legalized in all parts of the US.

" _There_ you two are," Max greeted in exasperation. "Where have you been? It doesn't reflect well on me if a third of my team goes missing."

 

"Captain Atom quit and Guy's not on the team," Sue pointed out helpfully.

 

"Fractions aren't my strong suit," Max grumbled at her, then smiled ingratiatingly at Booster and Beetle. "You didn't call, you didn't write. Didn't even leave a _note_."

 

"Would this have anything to do with your _divorce_ coming through?" Sue asked, smirking at Booster.

 

Booster just grinned happily and dropped an arm over Beetle's shoulders. Beetle looked like he was fighting off a blush and a grin of his own.

 

"Inquiring minds want to know," L-Ron spoke up.

 

"I—Well, we—Um—" Beetle paused and cleared his throat, then mumbled, "Kord Inc. is opening a new branch in Canada so I had to go take care of some things."

 

"And Booster went for moral support?" Sue suggested sweetly.

 

Booster opened his mouth to reply, but Beetle quickly elbowed the man. "Yes! That's it exactly! Moral support."

 

"Hand-holding," Booster added, smiling innocently when Beetle shot him an irritated look.

 

Getting the feeling something was going on that he wasn't privy to, Max frowned suspiciously as he looked from Sue to Booster and Beetle. Booster looked smug, Beetle was nervous, and Sue's cat-that-got-the-canary look was just missing feathers around her mouth.

 

"Oh Ted," Sue said suddenly, as if she had just remembered. "A call for you got forwarded here. Your secretary wanted to _congratulate_ you."

 

Beetle's eyes bugged and his mouth dropped open, while Booster doubled over laughing.

 

"You _knew_?!" the bug-themed hero sputtered, then narrowed his eyes and pointed at Sue. "Who did you tell?"

 

Spreading her hands, Sue smirked at him. "No one. Not even Ralph. Though I'm sure he'll figure it out if you start wearing your rings."

 

Holding up his right hand, Booster wiggled his fingers. "I had to switch hands with my flight ring," he said cheerfully.

 

Sue's eyes widened with excitement and she hurried over. "Ooh, can I see?"

 

With a sigh, Beetle reluctantly tugged off his left glove and held up his hand. A moment later, and with much more enthusiasm, Booster did the same. On the ring fingers of their left hands were two matching gold bands.

 

Clasping her hands together, Sue smiled with what looked to Max like sentimental mushiness. "Tell me everything," she demanded, grabbing their arms and pulling them along. "Who proposed? Was it romantic? I want _details_."

 

Left alone with L-Ron in the front area of SuperBuddies headquarters, Max stared after them with slowly dawning understanding. "Are they—?"

 

"Yes, your obliviousness," L-Ron answered.

 

"So they really—?"

 

"The whole ball and chain, it would seem, sir."

 

Max frowned thoughtfully. Then, he turned to L-Ron and asked, "Do you think we can change the commercial?"

 

"I'll see to it, o' mighty exploitationist."


	4. In Flagrante Delicto

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mary is _definitely_ too young to see that.

When the sounds of bumps and thumps stared issuing from inside Beetle's Bug, the SuperBuddies assumed that Booster and Beetle's attempts to work out their differences had degenerated into fisticuffs.

 

It was a  _ reasonable _ assumption.

 

So they had charged in, ready to pull the two apart before they could do too much damage to each other. What they found was not exactly what they expected.

 

While at first glance the scene they happened upon did look like the pair were fighting, that would be before their state of undress registered.

 

Booster was on top of Beetle, one hand holding the man's wrist against the floor while the other was somewhere between them, and determinedly sucking on Beetle's neck. Beetle heartily approved of Booster's actions, if the way his toes were curling while his heels dug into the man's lower back were any indication.

 

Gasping garbled curses, Beetle grabbed Booster's hair with his free hand and yanked the man's head back in order to capture Booster's mouth with his.

 

"Oh you're  _ much _ too young to see this," Fire remarked as she covered a startled Mary's eyes with one hand, while making no motions to look away herself.

 

"Well?" Max called after them impatiently. "Should I call an ambulance or did they kiss and make up?"

 

Smirking, Fire replied, "Oh they definitely made up. But the way they're going at it, I wouldn't cancel that ambulance just yet."


	5. In Las Vegas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What song was it? We just don't know.

Booster and Beetle were obviously, clearly, without a doubt _drunk_.

 

That was the only explanation for the karaoke love song. To each other.

 

Their teammates watched in amusement as the pair hung off each other, singing with warbled sincerity of their great, unending love for each other. Usually, that kind of thing could be passed off as Booster and Beetle goofing around, but so far they hadn't so much as _snickered_.

 

When they trailed off mid-chorus to stare at each other for a second before locking lips, that pretty much confirmed it.

 

"Thank god they're not in costume," Ralph muttered.

 

"I think they're sweet," Sue chided, leaning her head against his shoulder with a contented sigh.

 

The heroes seated at the table winced as Booster and Beetle tumbled to the ground, still kissing. A microphone fell down beside them with a brief squeal and their vocal appreciation for each other was suddenly being projected out into the bar again. Only this time with fewer words.

 

Sue groaned, and covered her eyes with one hand. "Someone should stop them before they get arrested for public indecency."

 

When no one answered, she looked up to find Beatriz watching the scene with an appreciative leer, Mary looking bewildered and overwhelmed, and Ralph.... Actually, Ralph had his head stretched out of the bar for some reason and looked like he was out of earshot.

 

Exasperated, Sue elbowed her husband, then crossed her arms over her chest. She was surprised when Ralph's head shot back to the rest of his body almost immediately.

 

"If we're going to do something, we better do it soon," he said. "Max is coming."

 

"Looks like _they_ are too," Bea purred.

 

Mary just looked even more confused and distressed.

 

With a sigh, Sue stood up and headed for the stage, tugging Ralph along with her. "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas my ass," she muttered.


End file.
